Still Here
by Extreme Light 9
Summary: Neither of them saw it coming. While looking for a gem, Coco gets badly hurt and won't wake up leaving Crash alone to deal with the guilt over what happened. Unbeknownst to him, he might have not been truly alone all that time.
1. In Harm's Way

**Chapter 1 – In Harm's Way**

 **A/N: Hey everyone, this idea had been on my mind all week and I finally decided to write it. I hope you enjoyed this new story!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Crash Bandicoot.**

 **XXXXXXXXX**

Crash was sprawled on his bed, the sound of his loud snores filling the room. Suddenly, there was knock on his door and someone came rushing in.

"Crash, wake up!" Coco said urgently only trip over some dirty clothes lying on the floor. She groaned and sat up, glaring at her brother who was rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Crash, you need to clean up this room. Someone could get lost in here!" She muttered as she looked around in disgust.

"Later," Crash replied with a yawn.

"You've been saying that all week," Coco deadpanned. Crash shrugged and hopped off his bed.

Coco rolled her eyes in annoyance and then pulled out a yellow device with a blue screen on it from her pocket. "Anyway, I've just found out the location of another gem somewhere in the island. We need to go get it before Cortex and his minions do!"

Crash smiled and gave her a thumbs-up before following her out of the room. He grabbed a Wumpa fruit from the bowl on a table on his way and rushed with her outside.

The two siblings then made their way into the forest. Crash was munching on the fruit while Coco's eyes were fixed on the screen of her device. Crash had to steer her away several times from bumping into a tree. "According to my detector, if we follow this path, it should lead us right to where that gem is!" She said pointing to a path between the trees. Crash grinned and nodded excitedly at his sister.

He was about to follow her when he noticed something in the sky and looked up. There were some dark clouds in the distance. It should be no surprise considering that it has been raining a lot lately.

"Crash, c'mon!" Coco called out for him and hurried to catch up to her, pushing the uneasiness at the back of his mind. They'll be fine. They will just have to find the gem before it rains again!

After walking for a while, the two reached the end of the path where a large creek ran across a clearing. The water ebbed several feet from its submerged banks. It must have been filled from all the rain.

Coco frowned thoughtfully and checked her device. "Well, this is the place. The gem should be here somewhere." She said as the two split up to search the area for the precious stone.

Coco walked over the muddy grass carefully and checked near a fallen tree. She glanced back to see her brother going as far as digging holes in the ground. She rolled her eyes fondly and continued searching.

They only managed to look for a few minutes before she felt something wet hit her forehead. She glanced up to see the dark clouds had covered the sky completely. Droplets of rain began falling down steadily.

"Crash, we should head back now!" Coco said, hating the fact that they were going back home empty-handed.

"Wait, there!" Crash suddenly exclaimed, pointing at something glinting in the dirt not far from where she was.

Wasting no time, Coco quickly rushed over and began digging out the object from the dirt, revealing it to be a dark blue gem. Coco smiled as she held it in her hands and showed it to Crash.

"Great work, big brother!" Coco muttered and Crash grinned proudly at the praise. His face then fell slightly and his ears perked up.

"What is it?" She asked concerned, but for a moment her brother didn't respond to her. His was attention was elsewhere, staring at something in the trees, brows furrowed in concertation.

"You hear that?" Crash finally asked her.

Coco blinked in confusion and listened. There was a faint sound of rushing water and wood breaking in the distance, but she couldn't tell what could be causing it.

And that's when it happened.

They both gasped when the water level suddenly rose, reaching their waists. Their heads snapped to where the ominous noise was coming from to see water bursting through the trees.

"F-flash flood!" Coco cried out in panic.

Crash quickly tried to get to his sister, but the current kept getting stronger and stronger until it finally swept them both away.

Coco screamed and struggled to keep herself from drowning in the murky waters. Broken branches and even crumbled pieces from the ruins were being carried by the current with her. "C-crash!" She exclaimed, hoping to hear a response from him, but none came.

She hadn't seen what it was, but something came rushing through the water and hit her hard. Her body instantly gone limp and her vision slowly darkened until all the noises faded out.

 **XXXXXXXXX**

Consciousness gradually came to him.

Crash slowly opened his eyes and winced immediately when he tried sitting up, pain shooting through his leg. His body was drenched and he had a throbbing headache. He tried touching the side of his head and flinched, feeling a bruise there. Grunting, he managed to pull himself into a sitting position and glanced around.

He was in a part of the forest that he didn't recognize. There were broken branches and mud puddles everywhere. He couldn't tell what time it was since the clouds still covered the sky. Crash rubbed his sore head, trying to clear the haziness in his mind.

 _Coco!_

Crash's eyes widen in alarm as he recalled what happened and felt his blood run cold. He looked around frantically for his little sister, but she was nowhere to be seen. Panicking, Crash pulled himself slowly up and despite the pain in his leg, began searching the area for her.

"Coco?" He called out. His voice sounded hoarse, but he didn't care, didn't stop. "Coco!"

She had to be somewhere nearby. If he could have survived that flash flood then so could she!

Right?

The bandicoot shook the doubt away and continued following the creek for what felt like hours, his chest heavy with worry. He eventually saw something up ahead and gasped.

There, lying on the ground unconscious was his sister. Crash was moving before he even realized it. He scrambled over and quickly pulled her away so she wouldn't get taken by the current again.

He then lay her on her back and knelt down by her side to check on her. Her clothes were dirty and her hair was disheveled. There was a scratch on her arm, but overall she didn't seem to be severely injured, much to his relief.

"Coco, wake up," He muttered, shaking her slightly. His sister, however, didn't respond to his voice and lay there motionlessly.

"Coco?" Crash murmured in confusion. His words were met with silence again and felt a knot form in his stomach.

What's wrong? Why wasn't she waking up?

He began shaking her and calling her name over and over with increasing desperation, but no matter what he did, she wouldn't even stir.

This can't be happening.

No.

 _NO!_

"Aku-Aku!" Crash called out, voice wavering

There was bright flash of light and a loud mutter in the air as the mask appeared. "Hello, children. How have you been- Oh my….." The smile on his face immediately vanished and he gasped in horror when he saw the state the two were in.

"Crash, what happened!?" He asked as he flew over to them worriedly.

"Help her," Crash said shakily, staring down at his sister with his eyes misting over.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Aku-Aku hadn't expected his day to take such a turn.

Nothing could have prepared him for the sight he had been awakened to, of Crash hurt and holding his unconscious sister in his hands, crying and pleading him to do something.

Seeing no time to ask questions, he immediately teleported them away from that place and back in front of their house.

"Hurry, get her inside!" Aku-Aku muttered as he pushed the door open with his magic. Crash carefully picked up Coco and carried her through the door. He made his way to her room and placed her on her pink bed gently. He then stepped back to let Aku-Aku check on her and watched him anxiously.

Aku-Aku floated over the unconscious girl, looking at her closely. While he could sense that she wasn't dead, something still felt off, but he couldn't tell what it was.

He tried using some of his magic to fix her up. While she looked a little better than she was moments ago and the stains were gone from her clothes, she remained unresponsive even after that.

"I….I tried my best, but something still seemed to be wrong. I can't figure out what it is though." Aku-Aku admitted, brows furrowed in confusion.

Crash's face fell and he felt a stab of guilt. This was all his fault. If he had said something earlier, if he had gotten them out of there sooner then none of this would have happened!

Noticing his ears drooping, Aku-Aku spoke up. "I'm sure she'll be alright. Maybe we just have to wait and she will wake up eventually," He said, hoping to reassure him. It pained the mask deeply to see the usually happy and carefree bandicoot this scared and upset.

Crash nodded dejectedly. He stared at his sister and felt a lump rise in his throat. _Please…..wake up…_

Meanwhile, a lone figure was lying on the ground somewhere in the forest. Her faintly glowing body suddenly stirred and her eyes opened. She slowly sat up and glanced around herself in confusion.

"Crash?

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **A/N: Thanks for reading. I have a lot of things planned for this story and I'm really excited to get started.**

 **Let me know what you think of this so far with a review!**


	2. Unseen

**Chapter 2 – Unseen**

 **A/N: Hey everyone, thanks for the positive feedback. I'm not sure how many chapters will be in this fic, but I'll let you guys know when I decide.**

 **Heads up, it's going to get feels-y from here.**

 **XXXXXXX**

Coco sat up, looking around herself in confusion. It was almost sundown and she wasn't familiar with the place she was in. "Crash, where are you?" She called out, but no answer came. She groaned and rubbed her head, trying to clear the fogginess in her mind. It was then she remembered.

The flood!

"Oh no," Coco gasped and looked around worriedly for her brother. Where was he? Was he hurt? "Crash, can you hear me?" She shouted, but only the sound of the wind answered her.

Coco frowned and placed a hand over chest. The intense pain she felt before she passed out was gone, reduced to a dull ache. The memory of pain, more than pain itself. Her body felt strangely light too.

 _Weird._ Coco thought and then decided not dwell on it. She had more pressing matters to worry about right now like finding her brother. She stood up and searched the area for him for several minutes until finally an idea hit her.

"Aku-Aku?" She called out. "I need your help!"

He will surely know what to do. He will help her find her brother and get them back home safely, but the mask never showed up.

The girl frowned worriedly. Aku-Aku usually came immediately to their aid whenever they called him.

 _Something's wrong._

Biting her lip, Coco reluctantly decided to head home. There was a big chance that her brother went home after not finding her and was waiting for her there.

The forest was bathed in an orange light while the trees casted long shadows on the ground. Coco reached into her pocket for her gem detector to see the map only to find nothing. Her eyes widened.

"No, no, no!" She searched both her pockets frantically and groaned. Not only had she lost her device but also the gem. They went all the way out here and nearly drowned for nothing!

Sighing, she began walking again, keeping an eye out at the shadows. Just then, she gasped when something moved in the bushes. It turned out to be a Venus flytrap, stretching up and looming over her. Coco tensed up, but to her surprise the demonic plant didn't react to her at all and instead curled up in the bushes once more.

Coco blinked and scratched her head. "What was that all about?" She murmured. She thought for sure the thing would attack her on the spot so why didn't it?

She shrugged and turned away. She should be glad she wasn't going to have to fight for her life after her near brush with death this morning.

After a while, Coco managed to find the right path though she couldn't explain how she did. There was a feeling that kept pushing her into going in that specific direction until she did found it, but she decided not to question it.

Relief filled the bandicoot when she saw their house in the distance. There was a light coming from the window and the door was left open meaning that someone was already inside. She gazed at the distance to see the sun setting and was glad to have made it there before it got dark.

She stepped through the door and saw her brother sitting at the table. "Crash, there you are! Are you okay? I was really worried about you!" Coco said smiling as she ran over to him, but her brother didn't respond to her.

"Crash?" She muttered confused and again he didn't even react to her voice and continued pushing a Wumpa fruit around with his finger, a blank expression on his face. He then huffed and glanced at the hallway for a moment before placing it back into the bowl and walking away, leaving her staring at him in stunned silence.

Coco's ears drooped, feeling beyond hurt. What just happened? Why did he ignore her like that? After they were separated in the flood, she thought he will be relieved to see her again or at least show some concern about her wellbeing, but he just ignored her and walked away.

Coco clutched her hands angrily and stormed after him, wanting to give him a piece of her mind. "Crash, you come back here!" She muttered as she followed him to her room. "Crash Bandicoot, stop ignoring….me….." she trailed off as she stood next to him and her thoughts came to a screeching halt at what she saw.

There, lying the on the bed in front of them was herself.

"W-what is this?" Her mind couldn't process what she was seeing as she stepped forward.

Coco yelped and fell on her backside when Aku-Aku flew _right_ _through_ her towards Crash. She sat there on the floor stunned for a minute and then placed a hand over chest. How did he do that?

It was then Coco finally got a good look at herself for the first time since she woke up. She could barely see much of herself. Her body didn't look solid at all and more like an afterimage, as if she was-

Coco gulped, unable to bring herself to say the word that was coming to her mind.

"Nothing changed so far I'm afraid," Aku-Aku said and Crash's hopeful face gone downcast. The mask sighed. "Crash, it's getting late. You should go to your room and rest."

When her brother looked ready to protest, he added. "Don't worry, I don't need rest. I'll stay with your sister and call you if something happens."

Crash glanced dejectedly at her sleeping form and then nodded at the mask with a grateful smile.

Coco quickly stood up. "Wait, no! Guys, listen to me!" she shouted frantically, waving her hands in front of them. She tried grabbing her brother's hand, but it kept slipping right through him. "Crash, I'm right here. CRASH!"

But her cries went unheard and only their silence answered her. Coco's arm fell to her side, the weight of what was happening began sinking in. She shakily hugged herself, dread and panic filling her heart.

What's going on? Does this mean…..was she was…..?

She eyed her body and eventually noticed the slow rise and fall of her chest. That meant she wasn't really dead, but then why was she like this? Countless questions swirled in Coco's mind as she stared at her transparent hands without any answers.

 **XXXXXXXX**

Crash slowly made his way through the quiet hallway. When he reached his bedroom, he glanced at his sister's room at the end of the hallway one more time before entering.

He stood in the doorway for a moment, looking over everything before walking over to his bed and sitting on it with low grunt.

His mind then began wandering off as he stared at the doorway, recalling how his sister barged in this morning and he felt his chest grow heavy at the memory. He wished he could go back and prevent her from going to the forest, wished he said anything when he felt something was wrong on their way to the creek. He had nobody to blame but himself for what happened to his sister.

As Crash glanced around at the messy floor, he recalled what he said to her this morning and stood up with a sigh. He might as well get to that. Besides, it gave him something to do to pass the time.

He took his time while cleaning up the room and putting everything away. He found himself smirking weakly, wondering what his sister would say if she saw him _finally_ doing what she had been nagging him to do for days. It'll be quite the surprise for her when she wakes up.

While picking up his skateboard from the floor, Crash noticed something under his bed that instantly got his attention. He reached for it and paused when he saw what it was.

 _ **Two years ago**_

"Happy birthday!"

The two bandicoots laughed as they sat around the table in the dimly lit room. In front of them was a cake with two candles on the top which had just been blown by them.

Since neither of them knew when their birthdays were, they both agreed on celebrating them on the same day. While Coco took her time with her slice of cake, Crash scarfed down his immediately.

"Slow down, Crash!" Coco said with a smile as she watched him remove any trace of his cake in a less than a graceful manner.

"Presents!" Crash licked the frosting from his lips and cheered. He bent down to grab the present he got her which was orange with a yellow ribbon. "Mine first!" He said and practically shoved it into her hands in his excitement.

"Alright, alright." Coco giggled and inspected the present curiously. She then unwrapped the box and removed the lid, hands freezing in mid-air when she saw what was inside. It was a bright pink laptop. There also was a Wumpa fruit sticker on the back, presumably her brother's doing.

"C-Crash, where did you get this?" Coco asked breathlessly. Her brother just gave her a wink and elaborated no further.

"Come on!" Crash urged her eagerly.

Coco slowly took the laptop out of the box and opened it, pressing a button and watching the screen light up in front of her. She swallowed. "Crash….this is too much. You really didn't have to-"

"You like it?" He asked.

"Of course I do, but…." She sighed and ran a hand through her hair before looking up at him. "Thank you," she smiled. Crash rubbed the back of his head, grinning sheepishly.

Coco then reached down and picked up a purple present with blue stripes, looking a little uncertain. "Here you go,"

Crash took the present and shook it lightly, wondering what she had gotten him. Coco was biting her lip anxiously for some reason though.

"Wait, don't open it!" She exclaimed when he was about to remove the wrappings off his present.

Startled, Crash immediately dropped the present and pressed his hands close to his chest, staring at it as if could explode at any second. "Is it dangerous?"

"What? No! It's just….it's not as good as your gift." Coco said hesitantly.

Crash looked at her in surprise, not knowing what to say. She looked so self-conscious and embarrassed just by admitting that. He frowned, not liking to see her like that. "Let me see," He brought the present in front of himself again and began unwrapping it. Coco watched him from her seat, fidgeting nervously.

Crash finally removed the lid and blinked when he saw what was inside.

It was a bright red scarf.

While Crash took out the piece of cloth and inspected it in his hands, Coco had her face buried in her hands in embarrassment. "I'm sorry, Crash. I should have thought of something better!" She muttered, feeling terrible. Her present was nothing compared to his. She couldn't believe she had gotten him something so simple and silly!

"I like it!" Crash finally said.

"What!?" Coco looked up at him as if he had grown a second head. "How could you….? Oh Crash, no. You don't have to say that just so I won't feel bad. It's my fault. I should have brought you a better present than this!"

But Crash wasn't listening to her. He quickly stood up from his chair and tied the scarf around his neck, leaving one end dangling on his back. He then turned to her with a huge grin and exclaimed. "Ta-da!"

Coco was staring at her brother at a loss of words, not knowing what to say to get him to understand, but then sighed and gave up. "Do you….really like it?" she asked hesitantly.

Crash grinned and nodded without hesitation, causing the tension in her body to slowly disappear and a small smile tugged at her lips. Well, if he liked it then it didn't matter she guessed.

Crash looked over himself for a moment and then took a heroic pose, flexing his muscles and earning a laugh from his sister.

"Crash, that's not what I made it for!"

 _ **Now**_

Crash felt a lump rise in his throat and whipped his eyes furiously when they began welling up with tears.

He was about to put the scarf in the box with his other belongings, but hesitated and looked down at it again in thought. He then found himself wrapping it around his neck just like he once did before, feeling some comfort from wearing it again.

He then went to lay down on his bed and closed his eyes, feeling himself slowly drifting off to sleep.

 **XXXXXXX**

 **A/N: Thanks for reading and please review!**


	3. Without You

**Chapter 3 – Without You**

 **A/N: Hey everyone, thanks for the positive feedback. I'm glad you guys are enjoying this fic so far. I also hope you like the new image for the fic. It was drawn by me. :)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Crash Bandicoot.**

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Coco huffed as she paced the dark hallway, mulling over her predicament. She had no idea what to do. She had tried and tried, but nobody could see nor hear her. She eventually gave up on communicating with them when it was clear that no amount of yelling would get even a twitch out of the two.

She wasn't sure what time was it, but she knew it was pretty late, probably past midnight. Yet she didn't feel the slightest bit tired. She had tried for two hours to fall asleep. She had laid down on the floor of her room and closed her eyes, waiting for the eventual lull of sleep, but nothing came.

So now she was left alone wandering the rooms of the house with nothing to do. She couldn't touch nor interact with her surroundings. There was nothing she could do to pass time.

It didn't help that everything was still and quiet in the house. The only sound she could hear was the wind blowing outside. There were no voices or noises to distract her and fill the silence, making her loneliness even more unbearable.

"No!" Coco muttered and hit both her cheeks to snap out of those thoughts. She couldn't let this get to her. She and her brother get into weird and crazy situations like this all the time. They fight against an evil scientist and his mutant armies and foil his plans almost on a monthly basis. They went to space and even travelled back in time. This shouldn't be hard for her to figure out!

With that in mind, Coco nodded and went to sit on the couch to begin thinking only to fall right through it. She groaned, running her hands over her face in frustration.

"Forget it," she stepped away from the couch and sat down cross-legged on the floor. She then closed her eyes and tried to remember what happened at the creek. _Okay, Crash and I got carried away by the flood. I got hit by something while I was in the water and then….I passed out._

Coco frowned. That can't be it. Something must have happened to cause….whatever this was, but she couldn't remember if anything else happened after that.

The girl sighed dejectedly, not knowing what to do. She just began trying to solve this and she already reached a dead-end.

As she sat there in silence, her mind began to wander. In times like these when she got so worked up over something or was down in the dumps, her brother will immediately try to cheer her up in his own way. He would always give her that big goofy grin of his and tell her that everything will be alright.

She never told him this, but even though she pretend to be bothered by his jokes when she was upset, she appreciated it a lot.

Coco felt her eyes mist over and she quickly whipped at them. _No, no, keep it together!_ She thought furiously, pushing those memories away. They won't help in any way right now.

She stood up and made her way to the door, wanting to go outside and clear her mind. Sticking around here wasn't doing her any good. She reached for the doorknob, but her hand went right through it like everything else.

She stared at the door and then at her hand in thought for a moment before curiously holding it out and watching it go right through the wood in slight awe. She slowly pushed her way forward and found herself standing outside. "I'll never get used to this," she muttered as she stared at the door. It felt surreal, to be able to walk through solid objects like this.

She sighed again and walked away from the house.

 **XXXXXXXX**

 _Crash blinked away the bright sunlight and looked around to see he was standing on the beach. Confused, he scratched his head, wondering how he got here. It was then he saw a flash of red at the corner of his eye and glanced up to see a piece of cloth being carried by the wind._

 _Crash's hands immediately went for his neck and realized it was his scarf!_

 _The bandicoot began running frantically after it as the wind continued blowing it away, much to his frustration. He jumped into the air to grab it only to fall flat on his stomach. He huffed and when he glared up ahead, he gasped._

 _The wind was carrying it towards the sea!_

" _No!" Crash cried out and scrambled after the scarf, not wanting to lose the present his sister gave him. Before the scarf could reach the water, someone caught it. Crash froze in his tracks._

 _It was Coco, holding the scarf in her hands._

 _A big, relieved smile split Crash's face as he sprinted towards his sister. "Coco!" He called out while she remained gazing down with unreadable look on her face._

 _Crash quickly hugged her tightly, but she disappeared instantly in his arms along with the scarf._

" _Huh?" He looked around for her and saw he was alone on the beach again. What happened? Where did his sister go?_

" _Coco?"_

 _Suddenly, Crash heard a cackle in the sky and looked up to see dark ominous clouds approaching the islands and covering the sky, the same ones from the flood._

 _His ears drooped and his heart began beating faster as the wind picked up around him. He looked up ahead and his eyes widen fearfully when he saw something in the distance….a tidal wave._

 _Panicking, Crash turned around and scrambled away in terror, but it was no use. The wave finally hit the beach and crashed on top of him. He struggled feebly, feeling his strength leave him and his vision slowly darkening-_

Crash yelped and his eyes snapped open when his face hit something hard. Blinking the sleep away, he sat up and saw he was lying on the floor of his room.

He must have fallen off his bed again. Groaning, he rubbed his head as he thought back about the weird dream he had. He was already feeling himself forgetting the details, but he could remember being on a beach and there was a storm and his sister-

Coco!

Crash's eyes widened when he remembered that terrible morning yesterday. He glanced over to the window to see sunlight streaming through it. He quickly stood up and rushed out of his room. His sister must have woken up by now. He had to go check on her!

Wasting no time, he ran through the hallway and entered her room to greet her and-

Crash's grin instantly fell at the sight of Coco still lying in the same position he left her last night.

She…she wasn't awake.

Aku-Aku, who was floating right next to her closet with his eyes closed, cracked one eye open and smiled at him. "Good morning, Crash. Say….where did you get that?" he asked when he saw the scarf around his neck.

Crash ignored his question and pointed at his sister with a confused look.

"Oh, well…" Aku-Aku bit his lip and averted his gaze from him. "I stayed here all night, but she hasn't woken up yet."

Crash's ears drooped as he stepped closer to the bed and stared at her. The sight of her lying on the bed motionless like this made his heart ache. It didn't feel right, none of this did. This shouldn't have happened. They were supposed to come back home and celebrate find the gem!

Crash's face suddenly went from sad to determined. He had to do something. There must be a way for him to wake her up. Scratching his head, he raked his brain for a moment and suddenly noticed Coco's laptop on her desk.

An idea then hit him and he grinned. Of course, he recalled his sister saying that gathers a lot of data in her laptop in case they needed it later whenever they were off to save the world. Maybe there was something that could solve their problem or at least give them an idea on what's wrong with his sister.

He made his way over and sat on the chair. Pushing away some books aside, he opened the laptop and turned it on, watching the screen light up in front of him. He raised hands over the keyboard and then froze up when he realized he didn't know how to use it.

He stared at the keys, feeling completely lost on what to do. He hesitated for a moment before pressing a button, but nothing happened on the screen or to the icons.

Working with technology wasn't one of his strongest points. That was his sister's thing. He never even bothered asking her to teach him since he saw no reason to.

 _Idiot!_ The word was hissed sharply at the back of his mind and Crash's ears fell a little. He sighed as he faced the screen again, the bright light flashing on his face almost mocking him.

 **XXXXXXX**

It all began last night.

Aku-Aku didn't know how to describe it or what caused it exactly, but ever since yesterday he had been getting this weird….feeling. His eyes would occasionally searching the room for the cause of it, but he never saw anything off or out of place.

It was like that feeling you get when you think someone was following you, or when you enter a place and feel as if something that _should_ be there wasn't. While he watched over Coco last night, he turned around, thinking that Crash came back into the room again, only to see nobody.

It wasn't entirely accurate to just call it a feeling. There were fleeting glimpses, a wisp at the corner of his vision that vanished the moment he blinked or looked away.

He made sure not to mention this to Crash. The poor bandicoot was already distraught over what happened to his sister and he didn't want to add the fact that he was seeing things to Crash's list of concerns.

"Aku-Aku?"

The mask blinked and looked down at the bandicoot. "What is it?"

Crash gestured at him and then at the laptop questioningly.

"What? No, I don't even know how that thing works!" He sputtered. He remembered a time when he asked Coco that and he hadn't understood a word from what she explained to him. Not to mention that he didn't trust any of these electronic contraptions in the first place.

Crash turned the laptop off and closed it, looking down at his lap dejectedly. Aku-Aku frowned sympathetically and flew over to him. "Crash, how about you go eat something? You haven't had breakfast yet, have you?" he asked, hoping to distract him.

Crash shook his head at the question and pulled away from the desk. He glanced at his sister one more time before leaving.

 **XXXXXX**

 **A/N: I haven't decided how many chapters will be in this story, but I'll let you guys know when I do.**

 **Thanks for reading and please review!**


	4. Anger and Tears

**Chapter 4 – Anger and Tears**

 **A/N: Hey everyone, thanks for all the nice comments. I'm glad you're enjoying my story!**

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

Crash didn't know what to do. As each day ended with his sister still comatose, he felt more and more helpless.

Every night he kept having these dreams where his sister was awake with him. Every time he welcomed them, embraced them, believing that the flood was just a bad nightmare, and they were all together and happy.

But then he wakes up in the morning and everything goes back to the way it was.

And it was _unbearable!_

"Crash, where are you going?" Aku-Aku asked when he noticed him heading for the door.

Crash forced a weak smile and pointed to the forest.

"Oh, alright. Just be careful while you're there, okay?" the mask said.

Crash nodded and stepped out of the door. The moment he was alone, his smile fell and his face went downcast.

Making his way through the forest, he glanced around blankly for anything to distract him, but nothing caught his attention.

He suddenly came across a thick branch and picked it up, examining it quietly. He then swung it around at the air in boredom as he walked through the trees.

The bandicoot wished there was something he could do, anything at all to help his sister. He even looked through her collection of books in hopes of finding a clue or a lead to help them find a way to wake her up, but he found nothing so far. All he can do right now is wait, wait and _**wait!**_

It's not fair….

Crash stopped in the middle of the path and his expression hardened ever so slightly.

It's not fair that this happened to them, it's not fair how _simple_ it was! The two of them have faced danger so many times before and made it out just fine, but somehow something as simple as a flood got them in this state!

Crash's grip on the branch tightened and he screwed his eyes shut, feeling his shoulders shaking.

He finally growled and began swinging the stick like a club furiously. The animals nearby scurried away in fright and the birds flew off the branches.

He hit the ground, the trees around him, anything that was in his sight, but it wasn't enough to calm him down. Panting through gritted teeth, he glared around and then spotted a wooden statue not far from where he was.

Seething, he stormed towards it and pushed it over to the ground. He then began wailing on it with his stick, swinging harder and harder.

It's not fair, not fair, not fair, _**not fair!**_

"What's going on here?" Aku-Aku suddenly appeared. He sensed a disturbance in the forest and came to investigate. He immediately gasped in horror when saw the bandicoot. "Crash, what have you done!?"

Crash blinked and looked down at the broken branch in his hand and then at the statue covered with many horrible dents.

 **XXXXXXXXX**

"Crash, I can't believe you actually did that," Aku-Aku said as he floated in front of Crash who looking at his feet dejectedly. He truly couldn't believe it. While Crash was mischievous, and had the tendency to play pranks on people when they least expected it, this was not something he imagined the bandicoot would ever do. "Do you have any idea how angry the tribesmen were when they saw what you did to their statue? I barely managed to calm them down!"

The mask turned to face Crash and frowned at him in dismay. "I'm very disappointed in you."

Crash flinched and his eyes misted over, guilt and shame filling him. He hadn't meant it. He had no idea what came over him back there. He was messing everything up like usual! "Sorry,"

Aku-Aku sighed and floated closer to him. "Look Crash, I know that you're upset about what happened to your sister, but letting your anger out like that isn't going to fix anything. Do you understand that?"

Crash frowned and wanted to say something, but then he gave up and nodded before walking away sadly.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

Coco sat on the ground as she watched her brother sleeping over an open book. The first time she saw it left her speechless. She knew for a fact that her brother hated reading books, especially the ones without pictures. So to see him do that just for her sake shocked her to the core.

It hurt her to see her goofy and playful brother this sad and lost. The fact this was because of her only made her feel worse, but there was nothing she could do except watching them go about their daily lives without knowing she was there. If only there was a way to talk to them or let them know of her presence. She had tried for so many days, but nothing ever worked.

It didn't help that there was a nagging little voice in her head that was producing many brilliant ways to prevent this whole mess from happening after the fact, telling her that she could have done better, should have known better than to go out in that bad weather.

Everything that went wrong that day could be traced back to her since going to look for that gem was her idea in the first place. Now her brother was left to pick up the pieces because of her own poor decisions.

She suddenly heard a soft quiet noise. She glanced over to see her brother grimacing in his sleep. She sat up and moved closer, wishing that her presence could put him at ease. He gave a weak grunt and shifted once more.

Coco frowned in concern and reached out to gently pat his head, even though she knew it won't do anything at all and her hand would pass through him like usual, but she had to do something. She couldn't stand to see her brother this distressed.

Just then, something she didn't expect happened. Her hand went right through her brother's head and fell on a rock.

"Huh?" Coco blinked as she stared at the rock in confusion. It was then she noticed that her surroundings have all vanished. Her brother, the furniture, their house, all gone.

She was in a forest of some sort now.

"Where….where am I-" As her eyes trailed around, she immediately froze up at what she saw. A giant red yo-yo lay on right ahead of her, bigger than their house.

The girl stood there in stunned silence, unable to form words.

 _I've lost my mind._

That was it. The loneliness and the absurdity of the situation she was stuck in had finally got to her. Now she was hallucinating things. Coco placed her hands on her head and backed away shakily. "Oh, no. I've gone crazy. I lost my mind! I-" She cried out when she tripped over something and fell on her back.

Groaning, Coco rubbed her head and looked up at what she tripped to see it was a crate filled with Wumpa fruit. She gazed around to see more crates and Wumpa fruit scattered around the area. It was then she realized something that made her eyes widened.

She…she hadn't walked through it. Her hand hadn't went through the rock too. Coco slowly reached down to one of the fruits and held it in her hands in a slight puzzlement. To be able to actually interact and feel things again after spending so many days as a ghost wandering the hallways of her house felt beyond weird now.

The girl's confusion grew with every second. What's going? How did she get here? Where did this all come from?

She dropped the fruit and began walking away. The trees around her seemed to be much taller than they normally should be and there were wooden masks hanging on them, all smiling and grinning. She could also hear the faint sound of drums playing somewhere.

The girl made her way down the dirt path until she was finally out of the forest and the beach came into her view. Gulls circled lazily over the foaming surf. There were more crates and piles of Wumpa fruit here too.

As she stepped forward, Coco closed her eyes, enjoying the warmth from the sun and the gentle breeze from the sea. It's been so long since she got to experience these things and she found herself slowly relaxing. Everything here was just so bright and vibrant, but then she heard something that snapped her out of her thoughts.

She looked up ahead at the sea and gasped. There were smoky dark clouds in the distance and she could faintly hear the sound of thunder coming from them. She looked around and realized the whole island was surrounded by them from every direction. This was only place where the sunlight reached for miles.

 _This isn't natural._ Feeling unsettled by this, Coco began walking across the beach, hoping to find anything that would help her understand what was happening and where was she.

Suddenly, she froze when she a flash of red up ahead. She hurried over and her eyes widened. It was her brother wearing the scarf she gave him and sitting in the middle of the piles of fruit and crates.

"Crash?"

Crash's ears perked up and he glanced in her direction curiously. Coco almost felt as if the sunlight grew brighter in that moment. "Coco?"

The girl jerked back in surprise. "W-wait, you can…see me?"

But she wasn't given an answer as her brother dashed towards her and hugged her tightly. Coco remained stunned for a moment before finally hugging back as she became overjoyed and relieved. "I missed you too, big brother," she muttered, savoring the hug as much as she could. There was so much she wanted to tell him that she didn't know where to start!

When they pulled away, Crash's smile slowly fell and he eyed her searchingly.

"Crash, what's wrong?"

"This….this is a dream, isn't it?" he finally asked and Coco blinked in surprise at the question.

"What? No, Crash. It's not a dream-well, okay it kind of is, but _I'm_ real!" Coco argued, but her brother slowly let go of her hands and stared at the ground blankly.

"I want this to be real," he murmured weakly and sat down in the sand again, curling up on himself and burying his head in his arms. "I don't know what to do..."

Coco's heart split into two.

"C-Crash, please listen to me. I can't promise that everything else here is real, but I am here. It really is me!" she said desperately as she knelt down in front of him and placed her hands on his shoulders, but no matter what she said he wouldn't look up at her. Around them, the sunlight dimmed and the colors began to seep from the sky and the forest.

"Crash, please!" she cried out as the island finally faded away and the next thing she knew she was lying on the floor back in the real world.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Crash's eyes slowly opened and he glanced around to see he was back in the living room. Sighing, he laid back in his chair and stared at the ceiling tiredly.

"Oh, hey Crash. Still awake I see," Aku-Aku said when he flew into the room and frowned. "Are you okay? Is something wrong?"

Crash sighed and shook his head. "Just a dream,"

The two then continued talking, but neither of them were aware of the unseen girl sobbing in the corner of the room.

 **XXXXXXXXX**

 **A/N: Thanks for reading. In the next chapter, a certain character will finally make an appearance.**


	5. Departure

**Chapter 5 – Departure**

 **A/N: Hey everyone, thanks for all your support. Here is chapter five.**

 **Enjoy!**

 **XXXXXXXXX**

Crash sat cross-legged in front of the fireplace with hands buried in his cheeks as he stared at the boiling pot, pouting. Aku-Aku, who was floating in front of fire place, was humming softly to himself while occasionally picking some wood and tossing it into the fire.

Crash grumbled under his breath and Aku-Aku turned to him with a frown. "No, Crash. You haven't been eating a lot these past few days and that needs to stop,"

Crash crossed his arms and looked away, resulting a sigh from the mask.

Unbeknownst to him, his sister was sitting next to him with an exasperated look on her face. "Come on, Crash. Don't be stubborn."

Soon enough, Crash was sent to sit on the table and wait there. Aku-Aku then came with a bowl full of soup and a spoon. The two items slowly floated over the table before dropping in front of Crash.

Sighing, Crash picked up the spoon and began eating. It's not that he didn't appreciate what the mask was doing, but he just hadn't feeling like eating much lately. The thought of his sister made him lose whatever appetite he had.

Once he finished, Aku-Aku carried the bowl away and for a moment Crash thought it's over, but that hope was dashed when the mask returned with another steaming bowl.

"No complaining, eat," Aku-Aku muttered at Crash's whine. The bandicoot reluctantly did as he was told nevertheless. As he stuffed the spoon into his mouth, Crash noticed something floating behind the window at the corner of his eye, but when he looked over it was gone. Brows furrowed, he shrugged and continued eating.

 **XXXXXXXX**

Later that morning, Crash was in the middle of going over the books like usual, feeling as if his head could explode from everything he was reading. How did his sister manage to do this all the time was something beyond him. Groaning, he rubbed his head and closed the book shut in frustration.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door, much to everyone's surprise.

"Who could that be?" Aku-Aku muttered.

Crash stood up and made his way to open the door with Coco following after him. There was nobody there. Stepping outside, Crash scratched his head in confusion.

"Hello there, Crash,"

The two bandicoots jerked back at the voice and turned to see none other than Dr. Cortex stepping from behind a tree.

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" he asked with a smile. Even though Coco knew she wasn't visible she still felt unsettled by the man before them.

"What are you doing here, Cortex?" Aku-Aku asked sternly while Crash took a fighting stance.

Cortex hummed, his eyes glinting in amusement. "Well, I'm not going to waste time beating around the bush so I'll just tell you. I know what happened to your sister," the man said and Crash's eyes widened.

"W-what?" Crash stuttered.

"How would you know that!?" Aku-Aku muttered in surprise.

Cortex smirked. "One of my drones was nearby when you two went into the forest and it followed you. I saw what happened."

Crash felt his stomach turn and his skin crawled at the thought of Cortex spying on them that entire time. He swallowed and glared at the man. "So what?"

"I came to offer you my help," Cortex stated, surprising them. "I have an excellent medical facility in my castle. I should be able to give her the care she needs,"

Aku-Aku stared at the man in stunned silence before his shock wore off. "What's the catch? You can't be offering this out of kindness."

Cortex chuckled. "What I want is simple. In exchange for helping Coco….I want Crash to come work with me."

"WHAT!?" they all muttered.

"Forget it! Crash will never do that!" Coco growled.

"You can't seriously think we'll agree to that," Aku-Aku said, glaring at the man.

Cortex raised a brow. "So you're going to waste a chance to help Coco out? For all you know her condition might be getting worse with each passing day," he stated and they all knew he could be right. He held his hand out. "So, what do you say, Crash? Do we have a deal?"

"We'll find a way on our own. We don't need your help, right Crash?" Aku-Aku muttered, turning to the bandicoot.

Crash was touching the scarf around his neck, a distant look in his eyes. He then finally looked up at the doctor and nodded. "I'll do it,"

"Excellent!" Cortex grinned while Aku-Aku and Coco gasped.

"What!? No!" Coco exclaimed, looking at her brother as if he lost his mind. Why would he consider working with the same evil man who tried to conquer the world, the same one who tried to hurt them so many times?

"C-Crash, you…you can't serious!" the mask stammered in shock. "Cortex is evil. You can't trust him!"

Crash looked at him. "She needs this," he murmured sadly and Aku-Aku's face fell.

The words hit Coco like a punch to the gut and her expression crumbled. He…he was doing this for her. This isn't fair. Her brother didn't deserve this. He shouldn't be paying for her mistake! _This is_ _her fault, her fault, ALL HER FAULT!_

Crash began walking over to the doctor who had a long victorious smirk on his face.

She knew it was pointless to try, knew nobody can hear her and it wouldn't do _anything_ , but Coco couldn't stop herself from shouting. "No! Crash, don't it!" she cried out at the top of her lungs, wanting him to refuse, wanting him to stop. Transparent tears began falling down from her eyes. _Please, don't do this…_

Crash and Cortex shook hands.

 **XXXXXXXX**

Crash was rummaging through his room and packing whatever he can take from his belongings into a duffel bag. He only got some clothes, a photo frame and his yo-yo.

It had taken him a few minutes after the doctor left to realize what just happened. He had immediately felt sick at the thought of working with the evil scientist, but he had no choice. As much as he hated to admit it, but they needed Cortex help. It had been almost two weeks and his sister hadn't shown any sign of waking up yet!

"Crash?"

The bandicoot flinched at the voice and turned to face Aku-Aku. He had a defeated look on his face and Crash couldn't look him in the eye without feeling terrible.

"I guess you're not going to change your mind about this. You really are going to leave," Aku-Aku stated.

Crash steeled himself and finally looked at him, nodding. Cortex said he we'll be back this afternoon to take him and his sister. He needed to be ready.

Aku-Aku sighed. "Crash…..you do realize that now you're going to be on Cortex's side, you're going to be sent by him on missions to attack the island and….as the guardian of this island….I'm going to have to fight you."

Crash's eyes widened and his heart fell at that. No, he…he can't imagine actually doing that, but he had no choice now.

Crash's gaze fell to the ground and his shoulders shook, lips trembling. "I'm sorry….I'm sorry…" he murmured tearfully.

"No, don't apologize," Aku-Aku said, floating closer to him. "It's not your fault. You…you did what you had to do,"

"But-"

"Listen, Crash. To tell the truth I didn't know what to do either. I tried using whatever I could think of with my magic, but I failed to help Coco. I kept telling you to wait and hoped for the best, but deep down I didn't know what can be done anymore, so please don't feel bad, alright?" he said, giving him a weak smile.

Crash whipped his eyes and nodded dejectedly.

After two hours, it was finally the time. The two heard the loud sound of an engine humming outside. Crash peeked through the window to see Cortex's blimp had landed on the beach.

Sighing, he picked up his duffel bag and placed it on his shoulder. He then entered his sister's room and carefully lifted her into his arms. Making his way outside, he saw Cortex was standing in the door with his hands behind his back, waiting for him.

Crash stopped in his tracks and glanced back at their house, his chest tightening at the thought of never coming back. Aku-Aku was floating there and offered him one last assuring smile.

Eyes misting over, Crash swallowed the lump in his throat and continued heading to the blimp.

It was then that Aku-Aku noticed something odd. When he narrowed his eyes, he could see a cerulean figure slowly appearing with Crash and his sister, climbing onto the airship with them.

Before he could process what he saw, the blimp slowly took off into the air and flew away from the island, disappearing in the distance.

 **XXXXXXX**

 **A/N: This turned out a lot more feels-y than I expected. I think about there will be about two more chapters and the fic will be finished. Anyway, thanks for reading and please review!**


	6. No Way Out

**Chapter 6 – No Way Out**

 **A/N: Hey everyone, thank you so much for the all feedback. I'm glad you're all enjoying this fic. Now that I'm almost done with my exams the next chapter shouldn't take too long.**

 **Enjoy!**

 **XXXXXXXXX**

Crash stared at his sister's sleeping form on the bed blankly. The sound of machines peeping was the only thing that filled the silence. An oxygen mask was placed over her mouth and a wire was connected to her left arm.

Crash then gazed around the room. There was not much to see. Plain white walls, a single drooping flower in a vase on a table and a small window adjacent to the bed with a view of the sea.

Sighing, he stepped closer to Coco and placed his hand over hers. Ever since the accident, she always looked so tired, so frail to the point where it hurt him to look at her for long.

He had made the right choice. Crash reminded himself. Standing around and waiting for his sister to wake up hadn't done them any good. This was the only way to help her.

But no matter how many times he told himself that, it wouldn't sink in. His stomach would turn every time he thought about the situation he was in. He was one of Cortex's minions now. He didn't even know if he could truly trust the man or what he was planning for him. This all felt beyond surreal to the bandicoot and he wanted to believe that this was just another one of those bad dreams, that he would wake up back in his house at any second.

But this was no dream and he knew that.

"Crash, come. We're going to be late!"

The bandicoot clutched his fists at the doctor's voice, but he tried to regain his composure and let go of his sister's hand.

"See you later," Crash murmured quietly to her with a weak wave of his hand before turning around and leaving the room.

Meanwhile, Coco watched her brother leave the room with Cortex and sighed. She then turned to gaze her sleeping form and touched her own cheek.

Nothing happened.

Desperately, she tried shaking her body awake or slipping back into it. If she managed to do that then Crash won't have any reason to work with Cortex anymore, but her fingers kept phasing through her body….just like everything else.

Eventually, she stopped trying and backed away in defeat when it became clear that she wasn't doing anything. "I don't get it!" she exclaimed in frustration. Why was nothing working? Why won't her body wake up? What was missing?

And that's when she was hit with a terrifying thought.

What if….what if this was permanent? What if she was going to stay like this forever?

Coco spent all this time believing that her brother will find a way to save her, but….what if there was no way to save her to begin with?

Coco quickly shook her head in denial and left the room before she could dwell on those thoughts any longer.

 **XXXXXXXX**

"Where is he!?"

The villains were sitting around the meeting table, watching the furious mask pace the room impatiently. Nobody really dared to stop him though.

"You know, we haven't been waiting that long," Dingodile whispered to the others.

"Want to explain that to him?" Pinstripe replied with a raised brow. He huffed when Tiny, who was napping, leaned against him and the mutant pushed him away with a huff. "Why did he arrange this meeting anyway? Does he have any idea how long it took me to get here?"

"Be patient," N. Tropy said solemnly.

Just then, the door opened and Cortex stepped into the room. Uka-Uka immediately lunged towards him. "You _**better**_ have a good explanation for making me wait so long!"

Instead of flinching like usual, Cortex smirked. "Oh I do," he then turned to the other villains. "Thank you for coming. I've call you all of you here because I have something brilliant to show you."

He turned to the door and called out. "Come in,"

Nothing could have prepared them for the sight of _Crash Bandicoot_ stepping into the room. They all gasped and jerked back in surprise, some even standing up warily.

"Crash? What is he doing here!?" Uka-Uka muttered, turning to the doctor in confusion.

"He works for me now," Cortex stated and the room fell silent for a second before they all exploded.

"WHAT!?"

"H-how?"

"Impossible!"

"You can't be serious,"

Cortex scowled and silenced them with a glare. "Enough!" he growled. "Yes, I'm not joking. Crash here has willingly agreed to work for me, isn't that right Crash?" he asked with a smile, placing his hand on Crash's shoulder.

The bandicoot's face hardened and his fists clutched further. It took every shred of will he had not to jerk away from his touch, but he gave a nod anyway, shocking everyone.

"But…..how?" N. Tropy asked, baffled.

"Yeah, isn't he supposed to be one of the good guys?" Koala Kong added, glaring at the bandicoot.

"I have my ways," Cortex answered without elaborating and frowned when he didn't see the reaction he was expecting. "What's the matter with you? Don't you all get it yet? With Crash on our side, there is nobody else to stand in our way to take over the world!" he exclaimed.

It seemed to take the villains a moment for the realization to finally sink in and when it did, some cheered while others still looked skeptical.

"I don't know what you did, Cortex, but I'm pleased to see you're not completely useless," Uka-Uka said, grinning darkly as he loomed over the bandicoot.

Cortex frowned, unsure of whether to feel offended or not. He sighed and clasped his hands together. "Anyway, the other reason I brought you all here is because I've been planning an attack on the main island for the past month and the plans are complete."

Crash's head snapped towards him in horror and his heart skipped a beat.

"I need you all to be prepared and ready. N. Gin, start storing ammunition. The attack will be in a few days," Cortex said.

N. Gin cackled excitedly from his seat. "Yes, doctor!"

"Once we're done with the main island, the others will follow. Soon we'll take over Wumpa Islands!" he chuckled and with that, he ended the meeting.

The villains began leaving the room, some sending nasty glares in Crash's direction.

"Oh, by the way, you'll find your room in the second floor on the left," Cortex said offhandedly and then heard a growl coming from behind him. He turned to see Crash scowling angrily at him.

"Oh, you don't like my plan?" Cortex taunted with fake shock, placing his hand over his chest. "Well, that's too bad because you'll be joining the attack. You're going to be a huge help for me," he said, placing his hands behind his back. "I'll be watching you the entire time so it would be for the best if you don't try anything."

Crash's eyes widened and his glare intensified.

"Well, then. I'll see you later," Cortex muttered with a smile before turning around and walking away.

Crash gulped, feeling his heart pounding violently in panic. He of course knew this would happen eventually. He knew that, but a small part of him had desperately hoped that he wouldn't have to get involved in something like this.

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't imagine himself attacking his own home…the people he spent so long protecting…Aku-Aku.

 _But Coco….._

Crash screwed his eyes shut as he felt them well up with tears. Everything inside of him was a mess of fear, anxiety and hopelessness. And he knew he there was nothing he can do to delay this.

In just a few days, he'll be heading back to the islands as their enemy.

 **XXXXXXXXX**

Coco shuddered as she wandered the very familiar hallways. It was nighttime and the moonlight streaming from the windows was the only thing lighting up the castle's corridors. It looked beyond creepy.

Even though she knew it wasn't possible, she felt as if something might jump out of the shadows and attack her at any second.

She suddenly stopped and turned to face the wall, gazing at the large painting of Cortex. He had a long grin and a smug look on his face.

She felt as if he was mocking her.

Scowling, she threw a punch at the wall and, of course, it slip right through it.

"Ugh!" she groaned and turned away to face the large window, feeling her frustration bubbling up. It had been two days since they came to this castle and she already hated being here, hated watching her brother being in the same room with those jerks. The way they acted around him made her and the things they whispered about him made her boil in rage!

Suddenly, the vase on a table near her fell into the floor and shattered to pieces. Coco stared at it in stunned silence. There was no way it moved on its own. It had been a foot away from the edge of the table. That means…..

"I did this?" she muttered, staring at her transparent form in shock.

Jus then, she was snapped out of her thoughts as a whooshing sound came from behind her and she turned to see Uka-Uka floating in front of her.

"Who's there?" he demanded and it instantly dawned on the bandicoot that he was looking at her. "What are you?" he muttered, narrowing his eyes in confusion at the blue glowing figure in front of him.

"What?" Coco muttered in puzzlement. Couldn't he tell who she was?

Dark red energy began gathering around the mask. "Whatever you are, you're going to pay for sneaking into this castle!"

Coco gasped when he fired an energy flare at her and she quickly jumped out of the way.

Uka-Uka snarled and charged his magic again.

Panicking, Coco scrambled away from the mask and sprinted down the corridor frantically. Uka-Uka didn't hesitate to chase after the glowing figure, sending more magical attacks at her.

One flare barely missed her shoulder and a spike of pain shoot through her arm. Coco's eyes widened.

It hurt her.

He can actually hurt her.

The very thought sent her thoughts spiraling and she forced herself to run faster as the onslaught continued behind her.

She turned around a corner and hid behind some furniture. "Come out!" he growled, glowing eyes searching the area for her.

Coco gulped and pressed herself further against the wall. Suddenly, Coco screamed as she phased through it and fell on the floor on the other side. Quickly picking herself up, Coco ran away again.

Warning bells ran in Coco's head. If Uka-Uka can (somewhat) see her and even _hurt_ her then that meant she was no longer safe in this castle. What if he found her again? What will she do then? For the first time ever Coco wished she could go back to being inviable to everybody again.

" _I can't believe it!"_

Coco stopped in her tracks and glanced back to the door she passed. It was the door to the breakroom where mutants went to rest after missions.

Curious, Coco phased her head though the door to see most of the mutants were there. Some were playing cards around a table while others were sitting on the couches. She stepped forward into the room, wondering what they were talking about.

"What is Cortex thinking, letting that scrawny punk into our team like that?" Koala Kong muttered, nearly smashing the cup in his hands in his anger.

"Yeah, I'm still sore from the last defeat!" Moe huffed, rubbing his snot.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I would rather have him on our side than not," Dingodile said staring at his cards, though he didn't sound happy about that.

Koala Kong gritted his teeth. "So we're supposed to let him get away with what he did to us!?"

"Of course not."

Everyone turned to see Pinstripe cleaning his rifle. "That bandicoot has caused us a lot of grief in the past and I'm certainly won't let him get away with it. We don't need that bandicoot's help. What we need is him out of the way completely." he said, gripping his rifle tightly.

"Dr. Cortex isn't going to be happy about that, you know," Joe said nervously.

"Dr. Cortex doesn't need to know about this," Pinstripe replied calmly.

"What do you mean?" Moe asked, dropping his cards on the table.

"We can always just tell him that the bandicoot ran away or was lying to him all this time about really joining us," he answered.

The same thought crossed everyone's mind and they all began to smile maliciously.

"Tiny smash bandicoot!" Tiny exclaimed, slamming his fists on the table and shaking it. His sharp grin was wider than ever.

"Let's go then," Pinstripe smirked, loading his rifle.

Coco took a terrified step back as the mutants walked passed her to the door. She turned to stare at them in horror. They…they were going after Crash!

"N-no! Leave him alone!" She cried out desperately as she tried to get in their way, but they all walked right through her. She gazed at her transparent hands helplessly and then back at the door, watching them walk away.

 _I have to stop them!_ She thought in panic and sprinted after them. Someway, somehow she had to.

 **XXXXXXXXX**

 **A/N: Thanks for reading. The next chapter will probably be the last for this fic.**

 **Please review!**


	7. Take Your Hand

**Chapter 7 – Take Your Hand**

 **A/N: Hey everyone, we're finally here. Thank you so much for all your support.**

 **Enjoy the final chapter of Still Here!**

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Back in Wumpa Islands, Aku-Aku was flying over the forest, searching for anything that could pose a threat to the island's inhabitants tonight. He then stopped himself when he got close to the beach and sighed dejectedly.

The last two days hadn't great for him to say the least. The absence of the two mutants affected him far more than he thought it would. Nothing felt the same anymore and no matter how hard he tried to reassure himself, he couldn't stop worrying about them.

They were living with the same man who tried to destroy them countless times along with his minions. _Not to mention Uka-Uka._ He thought with a grimace.

Many times he considered heading to the castle to check on them to put his mind at ease, but he knew he won't be welcomed there.

Aku-Aku sighed. He had allowed it to come to this and couldn't do anything to stop it in the end.

He was about to head back to the villages when he suddenly felt something in the air, a tug in his magic. It was faint, but he felt it. He tried to pinpoint where it was coming from exactly.

Curiously, he began flying in that direction as it grow stronger and stronger. Something about it felt…eerily familiar to him somehow, like he sensed it before, but he couldn't recall where exactly.

Descending down into the dark forest, he looked around, his eyes glowing brightly in the darkness.

The sound of running water then made him realize where he was. It was the creek.

His face scrunched up, not happy to be here again. After all, this was the place where all of this began. Aku-Aku then felt that pulse of energy again.

He narrowed his eyes and gazed around the area searchingly until he spotted a faint glow in the distance. If it wasn't so dark he would have missed it. He floated over there cautiously and his eyes widened once he realized what it was.

It was a blue gem, probably the same one Crash told him about.

He frowned and focused his magic on pulling it out of the dirt, inspecting it curiously. Brows furrowed in thought, he gasped when he remembered where he felt this before.

 _It can't be…._

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Coco sprinted as fast she can up the seemingly endless staircase.

Once she made it to the next floor, she rushed into her brother's room, phasing through the door. Other than having some basic furniture, the room was practically empty. Her brother was lying on his bed asleep, discomfort clear on his face.

"Crash! Crash, please wake up now!" she exclaimed urgently, but got no reaction out of him. Of course she wouldn't. What was she was planning when she got here? After failing to communicate with him countless times before, why did she think it will be any different this time?

The girl then tensed up at the sound of footsteps outside somewhere.

They were coming.

Panicking, Coco scrambled over to him. "Crash, please. They're coming to get you! Crash!" she threw her hands on his shoulders desperately in an attempt to shake him awake, but her hands went right through him and she fell forward into the ground.

Coco opened her eyes and blinked.

Instead of the bedroom's floor, she was lying in dark sand.

Frowning, she pulled herself up to see she was back on the beach. She looked up and grimaced at the sight of the ominous dark clouds blocking the sky completely.

 _Am…am I in another dream?_ She thought, but then the sound of distressed cries snapped her out of thoughts. Turning around, she had to shield her eyes from the bright light, but when they adjusted to it she gasped in horror.

The forest was on fire.

Flames were consuming everything in their way including their house. Embers and ash were rising to the air. She could hear people screaming in terror somewhere.

Even though the rational voice at the back of her mind kept telling that none of this real, that her home was safe, the terrible sight still managed to shake her to the core.

Not wanting to look at this anymore, she turned away and that's when she realized she wasn't alone on the beach. Her brother was here too. He was staring at the burning forest blankly, looking almost defeated.

And that's when it dawned her and Coco felt her heart sink. He was dreaming of the attack on the island.

Remembering what was happening in the real world, Coco quickly rushed over to him. "Crash, you need to wake up!"

Crash spared her a brief glance and then turned away from her, but Coco refused to let him go and grabbed his arm. "Crash, please listen to me this time! The other mutants are planning to kill you. You have to get out of the castle now!"

Crash didn't even look interested in what she was saying, but then again why would he when he believed she was just a part of this dream? He pulled his arm from her grip and continued walking away. Coco's face fell and her shoulders sagged in despair. It's hopeless. There was no convincing him.

She glanced down at her hands helplessly and her expression hardened. There is only thing left to try. She marched over to Crash and turned him to face her, much to his confusion.

"Sorry, big brother," she said apologetically and then her fist collided with his face.

 **XXXXXXXXX**

Crash gasped awake, falling out of his bed in shock. Looking around confused, he saw he was in his room again. He then reached for his face, wondering why that almost felt real. Sighing and standing up, his ears picked up on the voices outside.

"… _..are planning to kill you. You have to get out of the castle now!"_

He didn't know why his groggy mind clung onto those words or why they put him on edge, but he slowly went to hide under his bed anyway.

Suddenly, he heard the door open and the sound of someone entering his room. "What? He's not here!"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean nobody's here!" the first voice snapped in frustration. From his spot under the bed, Crash could see their feet and realized they were Dingodile, Koala Kong and Pinstripe.

"Then let's search for him. He's probably still in the castle somewhere!" Pinstripe said and Crash shivered at the dangerous edge in his voice. "Joe, Moe, stay here in case he comes back," He called out and the brothers stepped into the room while the three left.

Joe huffed as he looked around the room and sat down frustrated. "Ugh, this isn't fair. Why does it have to be us who wait here?"

His brother shrugged. "Hey, I wanted to go after Crash too, but these are the orders."

"And since when do we take orders from Pinstripe?" Joe growled.

Moe lowered his blade and frowned at him. "Well, it's not like-"

"Catch!"

Moe turned just in time to see something flying his way and he slashed it immediately with his sword only for the stuffing of the pillow to explode everywhere. The two began coughing.

Crash took the chance of the distraction and made a dash to the door, but Joe quickly reached out and managed to grab one of the ends of his scarf, making him yelp. "Oh no, you don't," he growled sharply.

Crash gritted his teeth and turned around to punch him in the jaw, sending the komodo mutant crashing into the closet. Wasting no time, Crash ran out of the room and scrambled away.

"He's here!" Crash heard Move shout in the hallway and tried to run faster. Stopping to catch his breath, he looked around frantically trying to recall where the elevator was.

Suddenly, his ears perked up and he quickly jumped back as a fireball hit the wall and left a scorch mark on it. Crash turned to see Dingodile pointing his flamethrower at him threateningly. "Leaving so soon, mate?"

Crash frowned in confusion. "Why?" he asked, gesturing to the flamethrower. Weren't they supposed to work together now? Why were they attacking him? He hadn't done anything wrong!

Dingodile smirked as he glanced down at his own weapon. "Well, here's the thing, pal. Me and everybody else here just _can't_ have you here after all the trouble you caused us in the past. We just wanna settle the score, you see?"

Crash gulped as he found himself pressed against the wall, his mind racing. He rolled out of the way when Dingodile fired again and again, heart pounding in his chest. He hissed in pain when a fire blast managed to clip his right arm. It burned mostly the fur on that spot, but it hurt nonetheless.

"Stand still!" Dingodile snapped as he aimed again, but to his disappointment, nothing happened. "What?" he huffed as he shook his flamethrower.

Panting shakily, Crash dashed towards him and knocked him away with a swift kick to the chest.

"Come on, Crash. Go!" Coco urged him.

Crash then hurried to the elevator, unware of the ghost following him inside.

Crash faced the button panel and reached for the button that will send him to the bottom floor, ready to leave this place for good.

And that's when he remembered something that caused blood to drain from his face.

"What are you waiting for? Press it now!" Coco muttered, frustrated.

But Crash's eyes slowly widened in horror and he slapped his forehead. "No….Coco!"

Coco blinked and then gasped when she remembered too. That's right….her body was in the medical room. Escaping the castle meant leaving it behind with Cortex and his minions.

From the look on her brother's face, she knew what he was thinking.

"Crash…..no…" she said warningly.

Crash's hand moved up and pressed another button.

"Crash, no! Go back to Aku-Aku!" she cried out desperately. "You can't beat them!"

But this was pointless. She knew he can't hear her and more than anything she knew that if he actually did…he will run off anyway.

He really didn't know what made her think he would actually leave her behind.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

The elevator door soon opened and Crash quietly stepped out, dread and apprehension filling him.

Coco stuck close to his side as she eyed their surroundings warily. She honestly didn't know why she was doing that. What was the point? She was completely useless to him here. Maybe it was just out of habit.

She bit her lip and looked at her brother. He was clearly worried and nervous about this, but wasn't willing to turn back.

There was a big door ahead of them. Crash pushed it open and stopped in his tracks when he stepped inside. Tiny Tiger was standing in the center of the massive room, his sharp teeth glinting.

"Finally!" Tiny muttered and punched the palm of his hand. "Bandicoot….SMASHED!"

Crash flinched at the force behind that. There was no way around this. He needed to get past him in order to reach his sister's room. Despite his fear, Crash took a fighting stance.

Tiny snarled and leapt forward, clutching his fists together and bringing them down at him.

Crash moved back to dodge and punched him in the face, causing him to stumble back. Snarling, Tiny picked up a nearby table and tossed it in his direction. Crash cried out and rolled out of the way just as it hit the floor and broke into pieces.

Panting, Crash looked up to see Tiny coming at him again and tried to pull back, but he wasn't fast enough.

The sound of tearing cut through the air.

Backing away, Crash stared at the long tears in the scarf in mute horror. He…he ruined it. His sister's gift!

Crash's hands shoot and he glared at the other mutant with unconcealed rage. Without a second thought, he dashed towards him and slid between his legs. He then kicked Tiny in the leg, causing him to kneel and ended the fight with a spin attack, knocking him out.

Crash stood there panting furiously. His anger soon faded and he held the damaged scarf dejectedly, ears drooping.

Suddenly, Crash heard something shift behind him and just as he turned around he was kicked away, landing roughly on the floor. Wincing, he clutched his side in pain. He then lifted his head up and saw Koala Kong standing there, glaring stoically at him.

He tried to stand up, but someone fired near his hand and he jerked back frightfully. Pinstripe came over with his riffle and stood in front of Crash. "Oh Crash, you should have known to not waste your time trying to escape," Pinstripe said, followed by Dingodile and the Komodo Brothers.

Crash watched dreadfully as the group of mutants surrounding him. What can he do? He was beyond outnumbered. He raked his head for a way out of this, but couldn't think of anything. There was nowhere he could go. No place to hide or escape to. Nothing.

 **XXXXXXXXX**

"No, stop!" Coco watched helplessly as the villains cornered her brother. Guilt and despair consumed her, knowing this was all because of her.

Just when she thought they were done for, the memory of what she did to the vase earlier came to her and gave her an idea. Looking around the room frantically, she hurried to a nearby wall and pressed her hands against it.

 _Come on, come on!_ She screwed her eyes shut and focused hard, hoping to make something, _anything_ happen.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"So, do you have anything stupid to say before we finish you off?" Pinstriped asked as he stood over a beaten Crash and that's when it happened.

Random objects around the room began shaking violently. The mutants watched confused and terrified as anything near the walls was either blown away or exploded spontaneously.

"What…what is this? What's happening!?" Dingodile stammered and jerked away when a flower vase next to him exploded. The books on the bookshelf rapidly flew out of their places and the portraits fell down from the walls.

"I-I'm out here!" Joe exclaimed and rushed to the door, followed by the rest.

Crash sat there shaking as this went on for a few seconds before stopping. He blinked and glanced around confused.

It was then he noticed the cerulean figure standing at the corner of the room. He tilted his head and narrowed his eyes until the blurry form became much clear and his eyes widened.

"Coco?"

The see-through girl's head snapped towards him. Her brows were furrowed in fatigue, but she still looked surprised at him. She murmured something, almost like his name, but no sound came out of her lips.

Rubbing his eyes in disbelief, Crash simply stared, having no clue on what he was seeing.

Suddenly, her hands began to flicker in and out of existence. She looked down to see the same was happening to the rest of her body. She looked up at him worried and called out to him just before she vanished in a flicker of light, leaving him sitting there in stunned silence.

"Crash!" Aku-Aku suddenly appeared a moment later.

"Aku-Aku!" Crash muttered in relief. Was he the one behind all of that?

"It's your sister!" he muttered urgently.

Crash's eyes widened and before he knew it, he was sprinting down the corridors as fast as his feet can carry him. His mind barely managing to find the time to remember the way. He nearly tripped many times, but he didn't stop, didn't care.

Scrambling through the final hallway, Crash threw the door open and slowly stepped inside the room. It was dark save for the moonlight streaming through the window. Everything around him faded. All the sounds became white noise as he walked forward and his breathing hitched.

There, on the bed was sister…awake.

She was messing with a dark blue gem in her hands and it was then she seemed to notice his presence. She looked stunned for a moment, but then a small watery smile stretched over her lips. "Hello, big brother."

Crash stood there numbly, unable to believe the sight in front him. She woke up. His sister finally woke up. Shoulders shaking, Crash's heart swelled and he felt hot tears welled up in his eyes.

Without realizing it, he was rushing over to her side and threw his arms around her. Tears streamed down his face as he held her. He could feel her sobbing as well and tightened his hold on her.

He eventually pulled away and whipped his tears away. "You okay?" she asked in concern.

Crash looked over himself and grimaced when he saw the disheveled state he was in. He knew for a fact he was going to get some bruises, but he smiled though and nodded his head. He then tilted his at her, confused. "How?" he asked, looking between her and Aku-Aku.

"It was all because of this," Aku-Aku said, floating closer to the gem in Coco's hands. "I'm not sure what it did to you when you had it that day, but I managed to undo it with my magic."

Coco looked down at the glinting gem in her hands quietly. She then slowly handed it to her brother and looked up at the mask. "Thanks, Aku-Aku,"

He smiled back. "I'm really glad to have you back, Coco," his face then grew serious. "But we need to get you two out of here. My brother might sense my presence any minute now and we can't afford getting into a fight with the state you two are in."

"Can you stand?" Crash asked.

"I'll…I'll try," Coco hopped off the bed and tried to stand on her feet only for her knees to buckle up, but Crash was quick to catch her. Weeks of inactivity seemed to have made her body frail.

"Let's go," Aku-Aku joined him and his sister as a green light washed over them and they disappeared in an instant.

Meanwhile, Cortex had been awoken by all the noises and was grumbling under his breath as he stepped outside his bedroom to find whoever was causing it.

He immediately froze up in his tracks when he saw the scorched walls and wrecked furniture everywhere.

"What happened here!?"

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Crash slowly woke up when warm sunlight hit his face. He stretched up and let out a soft groan. Scratching his head, he looked around his room tiredly.

"Ow!" he yelped when he pressed on his hand too hard and looked down to see some bandages around his torso and left arm. Why was he….? A sudden thud got Crash's attention and he rushed outside his room. He yanked the door to his sister's bedroom open to find her lying on the floor, rubbing her face.

"Oh morning, Crash," she said sheepishly.

Crash grinned, trying to hide the relief he felt from her. He wasn't dreaming of this moment anymore.

 _This is real._

He reached out to help her up and then gave her a questioning look.

"Oh, it's nothing. I'm fine. I just….felt a little dizzy that's all," she said, but something felt off about the way she said that.

Leaving the room, the two siblings went to the kitchen to have breakfast. Crash was immediately taken aback by how fast she was eating her food.

"Oh, sorry," she said sheepishly when she noticed his gaze. "This is just the first meal I had….in a while,"

Crash raised an eyebrow, wondering why that would matter if she was asleep the entire time, but then he shrugged and resumed eating.

Suddenly, Aku-Aku flew into the kitchen through the window into the kitchen. "Hey, Aku-Aku. What are you doing here?" Coco asked.

He smiled down at them. "I just came by to check on you two and…talk."

The two mutants exchanged looks at this. "Okay, so…..what is it you want to talk about?"

Aku-Aku sighed. "While I'm happy you two are both fine, I hope you never pull another unnecessarily reckless stunt like back at the creek again. Yes, you two made it out alive, but it could have turned out much worse."

Crash and Coco flinched, knowing he was right. As the mask continued scolding them, Crash noticed something odd in his sister's expression, but he didn't could tell what she was thinking.

"Coco, you might not have been awake to see what happened, but it was-"

"I was," Coco said suddenly, gazing down at her lap.

Aku-Aku and Crash stared at her, confused. "What do you mean by that?"

"You couldn't see or hear me, but I was there," When she saw their doubtful looks, she huffed. "Guys, I'm serious. I was really there with you. I saw everything. You two taking care of me, Crash searching through my books, the deal you made with Cortex….everything," she stated and the two stared at her, baffled. "I know this sounds really crazy, but I'm telling the truth,"

"That explains…a lot," Aku-Aku said and Crash remembered the blurry figure he saw back at the castle. Was that really….

"Just earlier I walked into my door because I got just so used to moving through things all the time," Coco said with a weak laugh, but then her face went downcast immediately and she turned to face her brother sadly. "Crash, I know you probably don't want to hear me say this, but…I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. All of this was my fault."

"But-"

"No, don't try to say it's not. I was the one who talked you into coming with me to look for that gem. I put us in so much danger because I didn't think things through. I'm sorry," she said, voice wavering.

Crash frowned when he realized she was talking exactly like he used to think about himself after the accident. "Stop," he muttered, placing his hand over hers before giving her his usual smile.

If he wasn't allowed to beat himself over what happened then neither she was.

Coco seemed to get this and nodded without arguing. She whipped her tears and then remembered something. "Oh, I almost forgot. Wait here!" she stood up and hurried out of the kitchen.

Crash turned to Aku-Aku who shrugged.

Coco soon returned hiding something behind her back with a knowing grin before presenting to him. "Ta-da!"

Crash blinked. It was his scarf, but the tears in it were fixed!

"I know it doesn't look like it used to, but I tried my best. C'mon, take it." She said with a wide smile.

Crash stared at her for a moment then smiled back and took it.

 **The End**

 **A/N: And done! I can't believe this fic is already over. I'm really glad you guys enjoyed it. However, there is something else I want to mention. This isn't the only ending I had for this fic. The other ending was not exactly…..happy and I decided to go with this one because I felt it was the better out of the two.**

 **Anyway, now I would like to thank everyone who reviewed for Still Here!**

 **Ultragreenyellow56**

 **HonkyHonk**

 **Cinerea Mayia**

 **N. Harmonik**

 **And all guests.**

 **Until next time! :)**


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